A LARGE men’s training prison holding more than 1,300 prisoners, has been criticised for confining prisoners to their cells for 24 hours a day without shower access.

A report by the HM Inspectorate of Prisons found that in HMP Northumberland, a few prisoners who showed symptoms were locked in their cells for 24 hours a day for up to eight days, without access to a shower or fresh air.

However, Peter Clarke, HM Chief Inspector of Prisons, said: “Most prisoners had only one hour a day out of their cell, in addition to collecting meals. This gave more limited time than at most similar prisons for basic activities, such as showering, exercising and using the electronic kiosks to make requests. Those on the induction units often had only 30 minutes rather than an hour a day out of their cell.”

There had been a stream of communications throughout the Covid-19 period and good signage on precautions against the spread of infection.

However, social distancing was largely confined to organised settings such as queues.

Inspectors saw little of it when staff or prisoners were grouped together.

Inspectors were disappointed to find that a few prisoners who showed symptoms were locked in their cells for 24 hours a day for up to eight days, without access to a shower or the open air, until a test result became available.

In a house block with several prisoners with mobility difficulties, the showers were not accessible; inspectors met one prisoner who had not been able to shower since March, as a previous arrangement to shower in a neighbouring house block was not possible during this period.

Violence and self-harm had reduced during the Covid-19 period, although self-harm had been rising in the last two months.

Prisoners generally spoke positively of staff attitudes and behaviour. For many prisoners, though, the short periods of unlock prevented much meaningful interaction.

Inspectors were concerned that a system of locking individuals in their cells for the whole day, in effect as a form of punishment, had grown without proper authorisation or oversight.

The “inappropriate behaviour” which might attract such unofficial punishment included taking too long in the shower.

More than 60 per cent of prisoners said they had a mental health problem and the prison’s mental health team had continued a high level of service.

Northumberland’s learning and skills function had been “unusually active” from the beginning of the restricted regime, providing individualised learning materials for those already enrolled in education. Education staff were now back in the establishment and enriching the offer further.

Social visits had restarted promptly in July after the national go-ahead had been given, and the arrangements were satisfactory, but the take-up low.

There were some weaknesses in public protection processes; most seriously, the commencement of telephone and mail monitoring for those presenting specific risks was often delayed by days or even weeks.

The report said the prison had “a strong emphasis on constructive employment” and inspectors found that about 30 per cent of prisoners had jobs in the prison at the time of the scrutiny visit in September 2020.

Some key workshops had continued to operate throughout the Covid-19 period, with the number increasing recently.

Overall, Mr Clarke said: “There was an air of positivity and confidence across many aspects of the prison’s life and its management; many departments had risen to the challenges of the pandemic situation well. However, in some specific areas of work, management grip was lacking; and while the regime had in many respects moved forward, the prison still needed to seek out and pursue further opportunities to provide as full a regime as possible within the current restraints.”